AfDB to help IPPs in Ghana

Independent power producers in Ghana will get some help from the African Development Bank (AfDB) in terms of loans, grants, and guarantees as far as their investments and participation in the power sector is concerned.

AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina said the help has been necessitated by the four-year power crisis Ghana has suffered.

“We’re going to be there to support how to reduce risks facing lenders. They have to be the off-takers of the power, so, the power purchase agreements have to be signed, that is, the gas purchase agreements have to be signed, all of those things require that you have guarantees, so, partial risk guarantee facilities are what we are going to be providing to make it easier for those private sectors – the independent power plants – that are going to be investing in this.

“Second is that, also to support the national electrical company here in terms of the reforms that are going to be necessary in terms of the tariff structures to make sure that it is a cost-reflective tariff so that the investments that are going to be made are going to be viable investments.

“I also want to say that at the end of the day, the bank will also work with other partners to be able to attract bargain investments into the energy sector here,” Mr Adesina said in an interview with Joy Business News.